Page 37 of Organized Chaos
Everyone was angry at Mom for letting me play hooky, then failing to realize I was missing for hours. She fell asleep on the couch, only to be woken up by Raven and Reid’s arrival from school. It was an honest mishap.
I got stuck in a walk-in freezer because of my dumb decision, not Mom’s. I never skipped school before, and the universe taught me a valuable lesson on my first try. I didn’t want Mom to pay the price for my mistake.
No matter what Reid or Milo said, I knew Mom would get better one day, but not if everyone was always ganging up on her. Mom needed the support of her family, and a fallout might throw her into the deep end.
“I’m sorry,” Mom uttered faintly, breaking my heart. “I fell asleep. I didn’t realize—”
“Are you even listening to yourself? How many times did Mia end up in the hospital because you weren’t paying attention to your own damn child? It’s a shock that social services haven’t taken her away from us already.”
“Reid, calm down,” Milo drawled, standing to his full height to command the attention of the room.
Milo played every bit of the older brother role—calm, collected, responsible, and... hella intimidating. What he established with short resolute words, most people couldn’t transmit with tenacious explanations.
While he was warm, Milo kept us at arm’s length. With Dad’s odd work hours and Mom’s issues, Milo learned early on that he needed to detach from us to do what was necessary. He wasn’t groomed for the role, but leadership came easy. Milo was the golden boy, on track to graduate Columbia with honors and a growing business on the side. He also knew half the tri-state area. Everyone loved and respected him.
Unfortunately, Reid was the only person who constantly challenged Milo’s authority. “I’m not going to calm down. There have to be consequences for what happened today. For God’s sake, she almost got Mia killed,” Reid shouted the last part. “Just a few more hours and...”
The room turned deafeningly quiet as they absorbed Reid’s unspoken premonition. I turned to Raven, begging with my eyes to defend Mom before they tore her into pieces. While no one in this house listened to me, they heeded Raven’s opinions. She was the voice of reason.
Not a single word from Raven.
The tension in the room spiked between the four of them. Mom appeared flabbergasted by it all. With her eyes downcast, she stared at a spot on the floor.
Milo stepped forward. “Therewillbe consequences.”
He didn’t have to categorize the consequences to scare Mom. She cracked. “I-I didn’t do anything,” she whispered, lips trembling.
“Exactly. Your daughter went missing for hours, and you didn’t do a thing.” Milo shook his head, disappointed. “Mom, I’m doing my best to raise these kids...yourkids, might I add. At this point, it’s whatever that you don’t take care of them. At least, don’t make my job more difficult. You should have texted me if you knew Mia skipped school, mainly because she has never done it before and only stayed home to makeyoufeel better.”
“That’s not why I stayed home,” I exclaimed before snapping my mouth shut. There was an unwritten rule not to contradict Milo in front of others. I rarely spoke up against him, but I couldn’t let everyone villainize Mom.
“You are right.” Mom closed her eyes, somewhere between humiliated and ashamed. “I... I’ll do better from now on. I-I’ll wake up in the mornings and... make breakfast before everyone goes to school. Pack the lunches too.”
Milo snorted as if he couldn’t believe the words she uttered. “No, Mom. I can’t have you near them anymore, not unless Dad is here to supervise you,” Milo spoke without an ounce of emotion in his voice. “This is becoming dangerous. I already spoke to Dad, and he agrees.”
My back straightened, neck prickling with awareness. I didn’t fear Milo’s stern voice. It was the cold, rational one that made me squirm.
“What do you mean?”
Milo stared at Mom coolly. “You’re going to stay with Dad until the end of his assignment. I booked you a flight to Grand Cayman. You are leaving... tonight.”
“Whoa,” Reid intervened. Even Raven’s head snapped up, taken aback.
“No!” I cried out.
Milo couldn’t do this. He wouldn’t. Raven and Reid were best friends. They had each other and a huge group of friends. Whereas all the kids my age thought I was weird. I had Milo, but he had too much on his plate, along with a vast social circle. With his attention divided amongst the three of us, there was only so much one person could do.
Mom was all I had.
“Milo, I’m sorry. I swear, I didn’t stay home to make Mom feel better. I wanted to—”
“Milo,” Reid interjected as if I hadn’t spoken. “I’m angry at Mom too, but this is extreme.”
“I’m not angry. This decision is purely logical.”
“But it wasn’t her fault,” I tried to chime in.
“This is ridiculous,” Mom said shrilly, voice rising with panic. “I’m not leaving my own house. I’m the parent here. You don’t get to make those kinds of decisions, Milo.”
